Facia rack

ABSTRACT

The invention provides an easy to use and inexpensive to manufacture facia board rack for temporarily holding a facia board in position for attachment to a building. The rack is a single member formed in such a way that it may be mounted to the side of a building to provide a ledge which projects therefrom upon which a facia board may be supported during the installation of the facia board. An optional riser member may be used with the rack to adjust the depth of a channel in the rack. The holder may be used either before or after the roof deck of the building is installed.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] 1. Technical Field

[0002] The invention relates to devices used in the field of carpentry.More particularly, the invention relates to an improved device forholding a facia board in position while the facia board is attached to abuilding.

[0003] 2. Description of the Prior Art

[0004] When constructing a building, facia boards are often attached tothe roof of the building. The boards typically are very long andgenerally unwieldy and are difficult for one person to properlyposition, hold and attach and it is desirable to provide for a toolwhich will hold these long boards in position for attachment to thebuilding by a single person without assistance. Various devices havebeen used for holding facia boards or other types of beams duringconstruction, but none of these teach the use of a single member, suchas a single plate, that may be attached to the side of a building andprovide a ledge to support a facia board and which may be used prior tothe roof deck is installed.

[0005] U.S. Pat. No. 5,192,059 (Fascia Board Holder) discloses the useof an adjustable holder having a number of members. The holder comprisesa first channel section adapted to receive a roof rafter, a fasteningmeans to secure the channel section to a rafter, a planar elementpivotally mounted on the channel section, a means to releasably securethe planar-element to the channel section, and a second channel sectionrigidly mounted on the planar element adapted to hold a facia board.Generally a clamping screw is used to secure the first channel sectionto the rafter and a clamping nut is used to secure the planar-element tothe second channel section. This holder is complicated to use because ofthe number of parts involved. Furthermore, some of its parts, especiallythe clamping nut and screw could be easily lost at a construction site,making the holder inoperative. Because the holder has a channel whichfits over a rafter, it may be used only prior to the installation of theroof deck on the rafters. Hence a builder needs to delay theconstruction of the roof deck until the facia boards are installed.

[0006] U.S. Pat. No. 5,088,682 (Facia Installation Holder) alsodiscloses the use of an adjustable holder having several members. Thisholder comprises a generally L-shaped mounting bracket having one legportion adapted for removable attachment to an external surface of abuilding's roof deck at its edge with a second leg depending downadjacent the position at which the facia board is to be attached. Asupport member extends from the depending second leg beneath theinstallation position and supports the facia board in position. Afastening means such as a thumb screw is used to hold the support memberat designated positions along the depending second leg. The position ofthe support member corresponds with different facia board widths. Thisholder needs to be adjusted for different facia board widths.Furthermore, some of its parts, especially the thumb screw could beeasily lost at a construction site, making the holder inoperative. Also,because this device attaches to a roof deck, it requires that the roofdeck be constructed prior to installation of the facia boards. Hence abuilder needs to delay the installation of the facia boards until theroof deck is completed.

[0007] It would be advantageous to have an inherently simple facia boardholder with no moveable parts, which is easy to use and inexpensive tomanufacture, and which may be used either prior to or after the roofdeck is constructed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0008] The invention provides an easy to use and inexpensive tomanufacture facia board rack for temporarily holding a facia board inposition for attachment to a building. The rack is a single memberformed in such a way that it may be mounted to the side of a buildingrafter tail to provide a ledge which projects therefrom upon which afacia board may be supported during the installation of the facia board.An optional riser member may be used with the rack to adjust the depthof a channel in the rack. The holder may be used either before or afterthe roof deck of the building is installed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009]FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a facia rack;

[0010]FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the rack of FIG. 1 with a faciaboard in operative position;

[0011]FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the rack of FIG. 1 and a riserwith a facia board in operative position;

[0012]FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the rack of FIG. 1 being used by acraftsman; and

[0013]FIG. 5 is a perspective view of a pair of facia racks in operativeposition.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0014] The invention provides an easy to use and inexpensive tomanufacture facia board rack for temporarily holding a facia board inposition for attachment to a building. The rack is a single memberformed in such a way that it may be mounted to the side of a building toprovide a ledge which projects therefrom upon which a facia board may besupported during the installation of the facia board. An optional risermember may be used with the rack to adjust the depth of a channel in therack. The rack may be used either before or after the roof deck of thebuilding is installed. This invention may be called a holder as well asa rack.

[0015] As seen in FIG. 1, the invention comprises a planar member havinga main section 2, a vertical section 4, and a connecting section 6. Themain, connecting, and vertical sections define a channel 8 for receivinga facia board. The main section has a plurality of apertures 10 formedtherein for accepting fasteners, wherein the main section can betemporally secured to a rafter 20 of a roof. The fasteners willgenerally be nails or screws for a wooden rafter and screws for a metalrafter. Screws are generally preferred because they go in and come outof the rafter easily, e.g. when using metal rafters. When using nails,it is advantageous to use double-headed nails, so that the nails can beeasily removed without damaging the member. If regular nails are used,they should not be driven completely home but a portion should be leftextending so that the nails can be easily removed without damaging themember. It will be appreciated that other types of fasteners such astacks and bolts may be used. The various apertures 10 are positionedacross the member so that different sized rafters can be accommodated.For example, apertures are located in the middle of the member toaccommodate narrower boards. In general, more fasteners, hence moreapertures, are required for larger or longer facia boards than forsmaller or shorter facia board to counter the increased weight. It willbe appreciated that different numbers and configurations of aperturesmay well equally be used in addition to those shown herein. It ispreferred that the height of the vertical section 4 be greater than theheight of the main section 2 to help prevent the facia board fromfalling off the roof while the craftsmen is positioning the facia boardin the channel 8. It is further preferred that the top edge of thevertical section 5 be tapered or cut on a radius to facilitatepositioning the facia board in the channel 8.

[0016] When the holder is mounted in operative position on a rafter, thechannel 8 is oriented so as to receive a facia board 30 therein andsupport it in abutting planar relationship with the end of the rafter22, as shown in FIG. 2. The facia board can then be secured to the ends22 of each rafter 20 along the length thereof, usually by means of nailsor screws. As shown in FIG. 1, the vertical edges 7 and 9 of the channel8 are designed to be fixed and perpendicular to the bottom edge 11 ofthe channel 8. This design ensures that the facia board is held flush tothe rafter end 22.

[0017] Generally the rack is made from a ⅛-inch thick plate of aluminumalloy sheet metal, however it will be appreciated that other materialssuch as plastics or steel may equally well be employed. The dimensionsof the sections are adapted to the size of the rafter and the faciaboards. For example, a rack designed to be used with 2″×4″, 2″×6″, 2″×8″and 2″×10″ facia boards will generally have the following dimensions:the height and width of main section will be approximately 11 inches and6 inches, respectively, the height and the width of the vertical sectionwill be approximately 13 inches and 2 inches, respectively, and thewidth of the channel will generally be approximately 2 inches. Othersizes may, of course be fabricated. The lower outer section of the mainsection may be rounded as shown in FIG. 1 or square.

[0018] In some situations, it is advantageous to use a riser 12 with therack, as shown in FIG. 3, to adjust the depth of the channel 8 toaccommodate different sizes of facia boards. The closer the facia board30 is to the top of the channel 8 of the rack, the more accurately itcan be fastened to the rafters. As shown in FIG. 1, the riser haschannels 14 therein and is slideably inserted into the channel 8 of therack. When used with a channel approximately 2 inches wide the riser istypically ⅜ inches thick, 2 inches wide, and 2 inches or 4 inches high.

[0019] Shown in FIG. 4 is a rack 15 according to the invention in useholding one portion of facia board 30 in position while a craftsman 34is attaching another section the facia board to the external surface ofthe roof. In one situation, the craftsman would attach the rack to arafter 23 of the building, place one section of a facia board in thechannel section of the rack, position another section of the facia boardin abutting planar relationship with the end of another rafter 28,attach the facia board to the second rafter 28, attach the facia boardto the rafter 23 which had held the rack, remove the rack from saidrafter 23 and attach the facia board to the other rafters 24, 25, 26, 27along which the facia board extends. It will be appreciated that whilethis invention has made reference to a specific order of steps forinstalling a facia board, once the facia board is attached to onerafter, the order in which the rack is removed and the facia board isattached to the other rafters found along its length may equally well bevaried. Then the craftsman repeats the process with the other faciaboards to be installed.

[0020] It is contemplated that more than one rack could be used tofacilitate the installation of facia boards. Shown in FIG. 5 are a pairof racks 15 and 17 in use holding a facia board 30 so as to support theboard in a vertical plane and substantially parallel to the ground. Asseen in FIG. 5, the facia boards may be installed using the rack eitherprior to or after the roof deck 40 is installed. This gives a builderflexibility in determining the sequence for installing the facia boardsand the roof deck. For example, a carpenter would not need to wait for aforklift to position the sheeting material to form the roof deck and theinstallation of the deck before he could install the facia boards.

[0021] Although the invention is described herein with reference to thepreferred embodiment, one skilled in the art will readily appreciatethat other applications may be substituted for those set forth hereinwithout departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention.Accordingly, the invention should only be limited by the claims includedbelow.

1. A device for holding a facia board in a position for attachment to abuilding, comprising: a unitary member having a planar surface adaptedto attach adjacent one end of a roof rafter of the building and having aplurality of apertures formed therein for accepting fasteners, whereinsaid member can be secured to said rafter in a desired configuration;and a channel section formed therein, adapted to receive and retaintherein said facia board.
 2. The device of claim 1 , wherein saidfasteners are selected from the group consisting of nails and screws. 3.The device of claim 1 , fabricated from a material selected from thegroup consisting of aluminum alloy sheet material, steel, and plastic.4. The facia board holder in claim 1 , wherein the height of thevertical section is greater than the height of the main section.